Smallest - Pasadena, TX

Pasadena Information

Anyone who has seen "Urban Cowboy" knows a little about Pasadena, Texas. The funny thing is that not much has changed there since the movie came out in the 1970s.

Pasadena, Texas, is the second-largest city in Harris County and has a population of more than 150,000. The city of approximately 44.5 square miles has an average household income of just over $54,000.

The top five employers include Pasadena ISD, Boeing, LyondellBasell refining, San Jacinto College, and Bayshore Medical Center. The majority of its businesses are in manufacturing (mostly oil refining) and retail.

The Pasadena Livestock Show and Rodeo offers scholarships, parades, and even "cowboy church."

Pasadena Town Square is the local shopping mall, with Macy's, Sears, Palais Royal, and other specialty shops.

Most of the apartments in the area date from the 1980s and are fairly inexpensive.

The Pasadena Strawberry Festival in May draws thousands of visitors. According to its website, "Strawberries, famous for their size and sweetness, were the first big business in Pasadena, Texas. As many as twenty-eight train carloads of strawberries a day left Pasadena loading sheds going as far north as Chicago and Kansas City. These strawberries not only brought premium prices, but also earned Pasadena the coveted title 'Strawberry Capitol of the South.'"

Just don't go looking for Gilley's, the "super-size Pasadena honky-tonk" made famous in "Urban Cowboy." It burned down in 1990 (houstonpress.com).